Cartridge bearing BB question

So the the other night when I was riding home, my drivetrain seized up - luckily only a few blocks from home.

The non-drive side of my bb unscrewed, and the bearing and shaft shifted over, pulling my chainring into the frame. No bends on either thankfully, but I was wondering if it's worth it, or possible, to reset the drive side bearing back onto the shaft. Or should I just get a new BB?

I used a torque wrench to install it, but I didn't check it after a ride or two - should I have, or was this just a cheap (it was inexpensive) BB?

There was also a lot of oil, I can only guess from the bearings, on all the parts. Is that normal for a cartridge bearing, or could the sideways jerk have damaged a seal?

Thanks

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Permalink Reply by koala on March 7, 2009 at 3:25am
If you are going to attempt to press the shaft back into the drive-side bearing, make sure to support the inner race (maybe with a short length of pipe?). Cartridge bearings are not designed to take sideways loads, so if you press the shaft in while only supporting the bottom bracket housing, the bearing could be damaged.
Permalink Reply by mindfrieze on March 7, 2009 at 8:45am
Wow, that's kinda a weird failure.

Since a modern BB is (or is intended to be) basically a maintainance-free, throw-away part anyway, I'd just buy a new BB. They run for around $30.

I think if your spindle popped out once, it'll probably be more likely to pop out again. You'll save yourself trouble down the road if you just put a new one in there.

I know it's not really a green thing to do, but unless you go back to an adjustable BB, that's just the way things are these days.
Permalink Reply by GabeW (not the other Gabe) on March 7, 2009 at 9:45am
well since I like to tinker and save money, I just put the spindle in a 16mm socket to brace the inner ring and gently tapped it back into place. The bearings still spin freely (not brand new-cranks-rock-back-and-forth freely, but pretty close). I'll keep an eye on it and if it comes loose again I'll just replace it. I don't mind another $30, but this one was only a few months old - and the same one you linked to mindfrieze. I might try a different brand if my fix doesn't work.
Permalink Reply by mindfrieze on March 7, 2009 at 9:59am
GabeW (not the other Gabe) said:
well since I like to tinker and save money, I just put the spindle in a 16mm socket to brace the inner ring and gently tapped it back into place.
...
I don't mind another $30, but this one was ... the same one you linked to mindfrieze.

Congrats on the fix. It's probably the first thing I'd do too, but I'd definitely keep an eye open for any pre-season bike shop sales.

Yeah, I only linked to the IRD since that's what you already had. It if were me, I'd replace it with a run-o'-the-mill Shimano. Cheaper and probably more reliable.
Permalink Reply by root on March 16, 2009 at 5:00am
i think i've finally gunked up my Sugino75 riding it on the street all winter. is it difficult to clean a BB yourself? i don't even own a crank puller but i feel like LBS' are going to charge a lot for this particular service

or, maybe i should just get a sealed BB..
Permalink Reply by Gecko on March 16, 2009 at 5:35am
Sealed cartridge bb is the way to go IMO. No maintenance and cheap to replace if need be. I've got a square taper Shimano that's been in my commuter for 3 years now, still butter smooth and I only paid like 10 bucks for it. A crank puller and BB tool will run you about $15 each if you're into doing it yourself, otherwise I think most shops charge 10-15 to swap BBs (can't remember exactly because I've been doing it myself).

root said:
i think i've finally gunked up my Sugino75 riding it on the street all winter. is it difficult to clean a BB yourself? i don't even own a crank puller but i feel like LBS' are going to charge a lot for this particular service

or, maybe i should just get a sealed BB..
Permalink Reply by GabeW (not the other Gabe) on March 16, 2009 at 7:09am
Have you rebuilt wheel bearings root? It's a really similar cup/cone setup. And like el gecko said, the tools are cheap and the labor can be fun. I say you should take it apart yourself to start, then if you get stuck just go cartridge, or take it to the lbs to finish the job - but I bet you won't need to.


root said:
i think i've finally gunked up my Sugino75 riding it on the street all winter. is it difficult to clean a BB yourself? i don't even own a crank puller but i feel like LBS' are going to charge a lot for this particular service

or, maybe i should just get a sealed BB..
Permalink Reply by krems81 on April 7, 2009 at 11:16pm
If you're going to do something like that, go with real grease next time. Used to do it all the time on my roller blade bearings back when I though I was cool, aggressive skating around downtown NYC. I guess that was my first encounter with Phil grease, back before I knew anything about bicycles. Now I have his name on my hubs... Who is this Phil guy?

travesty said:

I took off the cranks, popped off the seal and poured Tenacious oil as best as I could into the bearing area. Replaced the seals, they were almost completely unmarred. Seems to be working. Not as reliable as just replacing the whole thing I would say, time spent might even have long since warranted spending the money and replacing it while I was in there messing around. But that it is holding up for now and suits this bike which is not touring anytime soon. And I got a chance to clean off my cranks and chainrings while they were off and easy to reach. So a Cartridge BB is now serviceable in two ways, if that suits your needs.

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